Peter Schmuck's Orioles player predictions

RHP Chris Tillman

Jim Rogash, Getty Images

It took awhile for him to get here, but Tillman arrived as a top-flight starting pitcher last season and figures to be on the mound when the Orioles open the regular season against the Boston Red Sox on Mar. 31. There is still some upside after last year's 16-7 performance, but there also is some potential downside. The original scouting reports say that the upside wins.

It took awhile for him to get here, but Tillman arrived as a top-flight starting pitcher last season and figures to be on the mound when the Orioles open the regular season against the Boston Red Sox on Mar. 31. There is still some upside after last year's 16-7 performance, but there also is some potential downside. The original scouting reports say that the upside wins. (Jim Rogash, Getty Images)

Reimold's star-crossed career has reached a major crossroads. He is coming off a second major neck surgery and needs to show this spring that he can play regularly and put the bat on the ball the way he did before those health problems undermined a promising career. There's really no way to predict what will happen, but the Orioles bet $1 million on a successful comeback. Here's hoping they win big.

Reimold's star-crossed career has reached a major crossroads. He is coming off a second major neck surgery and needs to show this spring that he can play regularly and put the bat on the ball the way he did before those health problems undermined a promising career. There's really no way to predict what will happen, but the Orioles bet $1 million on a successful comeback. Here's hoping they win big. (Rob Carr, Getty Images)

With Orioles spring training set to open this week, this seems like a pretty good time to take a look into our crystal baseball and try to figure out just how each player on the club's 40-man roster is going to fare in 2014. Each weekday from now until Feb. 12, Baltimore Sun columnist Peter Schmuck will put up his outlook for five Orioles players and you can tell him if his head is in the stars or in the sand.